


free skate

by lagatos



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Christmas fic, Ice Skating, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-12-02
Updated: 2015-12-19
Packaged: 2018-05-04 11:29:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 12,389
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5332523
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lagatos/pseuds/lagatos
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"christmas au" where bokuto isn't so sure of himself on the ice and kuroo and oikawa may be hatching a plan for akaashi to teach him how to skate</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> happy december 1st! i'll be updating this fic about once a week until christmas, because i'm so excited for bokuaka and the holidays
> 
> just a note-
> 
> kuroo and bokuto have a student apartment together. kuroo and oikawa are biology majors and akaashi is an environmental law major.

“Do you think he’ll land it this time?”

            The arena was quiet for a moment, everyone waiting on bated breath as the two figures on the ice sped up, one of them suspended in the air for a moment before his skates scraped across the ice, slipping out from under him.

            Oikawa clicked his tongue, pulling his hat further down his ears as he turned his attention back to his phone.

            “What, like you could do any better?” Iwaizumi said.

            “Definitely not,” Kuroo said, looking up from his phone. “I bet he even auditioned and didn’t make it.”

            Bokuto laughed as Oikawa bristled, leaning over the railing of the bleachers to tune out his retort. The annual Nutcracker on ice had begun its practices at the college ice rink, pushing back the free skate time to later at night, but Bokuto couldn’t bring himself to being impatient like Oikawa was. There was something special about watching the tiny figures criss-cross across the rink below them, practicing for the Christmas show they would only put on once.

            Bokuto leaned more heavily on the railing, watching as the two figures skated off to the side of the rink, gathering around the director. “What time does free skate start again?”  

            “Soon,” Kuroo said, looking up from his phone. “It’s almost ten—”

            There was a burst of static from the speakers overhead, Kuroo pausing with his eyebrows raised, before tinny Christmas music started playing lowly throughout the arena. The skaters still on the rink exited, making their way down to the locker rooms.

            “I guess it starts when the ice is clear,” Kuroo said, standing up to sling his bag over his shoulder, picking his way down the bleachers. Iwaizumi and Oikawa followed, Oikawa still glued to his phone, Iwaizumi ripping it from his hands as he fumbled slightly with the steps downward. At the bottom of the bleachers, Kuroo was stopped by someone with messy dark curls, his expression serious as he pulled him aside, his skates dangling from his fingers. Oikawa and Iwaizumi waved and continued for the benches by the rink, leaving Kuroo alone to talk with the boy.

            “Are you staying the whole time?”

            There was a clang to Bokuto’s left and he tore his eyes away, catching Suga grinning at him, his heavy bag now propped open between them.

            “Yeah, why not?” Bokuto said, grinning back. He propped his feet on the seat below them, leaning his elbows on his knees as he glanced back at Kuroo and the boy, still in a deep conversation.

            “Doesn’t it get boring being the only one not skating?” Daichi said from next to Suga, as he pulled a pair of gloves on.

            Kuroo shifted slightly at the bottom of the bleachers, the boy he was talking to looking up at him silently as Kuroo talked, his face turned upwards. Bokuto inched closer to the edge of his seat, trying to get better view. “Boring?” he said distractedly.

            “I could still teach you how to skate,” Suga said, pulling out a hat to pull over his unruly hair. “It’s not that hard.”

            “I know how to skate!” Bokuto said, turning to face Suga with a huff. “I always get on the ice with you guys.”

            “Doing laps holding onto the railing doesn’t count,” Daichi said, grinning as he zipped up his bag.

            “Listen,” Bokuto said, puffing up his chest. “Enjoying yourself is the first step to improving.” He crossed his arms, smiling to himself for his impressive line.

            “I guess you’ve been slowly improving for a year now,” Suga said, laughing slightly as he zipped up his own bag, standing up to head down to the rink. Bokuto just nodded, feeling pleased with himself. They had all met at the beginning of last year after moving into the same apartment complex close to the university, which had a small pond in the back that froze over quickly in the winter. They’d often hung out at the pond, back when Bokuto had been hesitant to even walk on the ice in his sneakers. A year later, and he felt confident enough to buy himself a pair of skates.

            “Seriously,” Daichi said, pausing on his way down, Suga already almost to the bottom. “Let me know if you want any lessons.”

            Bokuto hummed, letting his leg bounce on the bleachers as he waved Daichi off. Down on the rink, the ice was being cleared, the Zamboni chugging along slowly. Kuroo was sitting on the benches just outside the rink entrance with everyone else, tying his laces, the boy he had been talking to now gone.

             Bokuto licked his lips slowly, scanning the arena. There were only a few groups of students scattered around the rink, as the free skate hour had been pushed back late at night for December, and Bokuto didn’t see anyone out of the ordinary. He sat there for a moment, humming along to the holiday music overhead, before shooting up quickly, clomping down the bleachers two stairs at a time, jogging over to the benches outside the rink.

            The speakers overhead crackled again, announcing the rink was open for free skate, and Suga, Daichi, and Iwaizumi got up, heading for the ice. Bokuto pulled out his own skates, slipping them on hastily as he watched the entrance, glancing at the people passing by onto the ice. Kuroo slid out his phone, tapping quickly next to Bokuto.

“Kuroo,” Bokuto said, dropping his bag heavily on the floor before squeezing himself between Oikawa and Kuroo. He bent over to dig around in his bag, ignoring Oikawa elbowing him out of his space as he pulled out his skates. “Who were you just talking to?”

            “Hm?” Kuroo paused with his laces in hand, furrowing his brow for a moment. “Oh, that was just my debate partner for my environmental management class.”

            “Really—?”

            “How’s the debate research going?”

            Bokuto looked up to find Oikawa had stood up on his skates, hands on his hips as he grinned down at the two of them. Kuroo narrowed his eyes, deciding how to answer.  

 “Takeda’s assignment is slowly killing me,” Kuroo finally said with a sigh, giving his laces one final tug before standing up as well.

            “Didn’t get a good group partner?” Oikawa said.

            “Nah.” Kuroo grabbed his heel, stretching out his quad. “He’s good. It’s just so much work.”

            “Tell me about it,” Oikawa said, pulling his hat farther down over his ears, where it kept sliding up.

            Kuroo rolled his eyes, his skate clomping back down on the mats as he dropped his heel. “You’ll probably get a perfect score while still finding time for five different clubs for the week,” Kuroo said, Oikawa just flashing them a peace sign before heading for the rink, stepping onto the ice and gliding away.

            Bokuto stood up from the bench slowly, shakily trudging his way on his skates to get to the rink entrance while Kuroo followed him. “I could never be in your major,” he said, scrunching his nose.

            Kuroo shrugged, waiting patiently as Bokuto stepped carefully onto the ice, gripping the wall for support. “It’s not so bad. Oikawa and I take most of the same classes.”

            “But it’s so much work.” Bokuto slowly put his other foot onto the ice, letting go of the wall slowly as he straightened up, testing the slipperiness underneath him. He settled his weight on one foot, pushing off the ice to glide along the very edge of the rink.

            “Speaking of work,” Kuroo said, keeping pace beside Bokuto, looking out toward the middle of the rink. Bokuto followed his gaze, finding the boy Kuroo had been talking to earlier, skating tight circles around the rink, Oikawa next to him, gesturing grandly with his hands, the boy looking politely interested. Kuroo held a hand up, waving as the two of them passed by, and the boy said something to Oikawa, breaking away to glide up next to Kuroo.

            “Hey,” Kuroo said. “Is Oikawa trying to steal our final debate topic from us?”

            “He might have asked me what we were planning,” the boy said, rolling his eyes slightly. He was skating at the same pace as them as Bokuto slowly worked himself up to faster laps, looking unbothered as Kuroo laughed beside him.

            “And he said he’d already picked out a debate topic,” Kuroo said, shoving his hands in his pockets. “He was gloating about it the whole class.”

            “He’s plotting something,” Bokuto said helpfully, slipping slightly on the ice before righting himself. The boy glanced up at him, Bokuto catching his dark eyes and giving him an automatic smile, which he returned slowly.

            “My demise,” Kuroo said solemnly. They kept skating slowly around the edge of the rink, Kuroo giving Akaashi an apologetic shrug. “Sorry, Akaashi, you’re getting dragged into it.”

            “Your demise?” he said wryly, one eyebrow arched.

            “It’s a tough game they play,” Bokuto said, speeding up as he got excited.

            “A competition for the ages,” Kuroo said.

            “A competition,” Akaashi repeated.

            “Only one person can have the best biology GPA at the end of each semester.” Bokuto added. “Oikawa can’t win again.”

            Kuroo closed his eyes, nodding in agreement. “A vicious battle.”

            Akaashi threw them a look, pushing off on his skates, gliding ahead for a moment before letting the two of them catch up. “And now you dragged me into it?”

            “No,” Kuroo said

            “Yes!” Bokuto took his hand off the edge of the rink, his momentum carrying him without wobbling as he pushed off on the ice excitedly. “It’s your quest now.”

            “A quest,” said Kuroo thoughtfully. “I like that.”

            “Akaashi,” Bokuto said, pausing for a second. “It’s Akaashi, right? You’re like the side character with the tools to help him on his quest.”

            Kuroo snorted, falling behind the trio for a moment.

            “Right,” Akaashi said, skating silently for a few seconds. “What happens when you win?” he said eventually.

            “When you win,” Bokuto said, putting a hand over his heart. “You _win_.”

            Akaashi turned to Kuroo, trying to hide the small smile tugging on his lips. “Do you really compete for the best grades every semester?”

            “Yeah.” Kuroo shrugged. “It makes it easier to study.”

            “Oikawa-san is very good at studying.”

            “Akaashi,” Kuroo said in a hurt voice. “Are you saying I’m not good at studying too?”

            “You’re good at studying, Kuroo-san.”

            Kuroo gave Bokuto a look before turning back to Akaashi. “But not _very_ good.”

            “You’re not going to beat Oikawa with that attitude,” Bokuto said.

            “We’re supposed to be together on this project,” Kuroo added.

            Akaashi pushed off on the ice, turning around to skate backwards. “We’ll do well on this debate, Kuroo-san,” he said.

            “Are we still meeting tomorrow?”

            Akaashi just nodded, giving them a polite wave before skating off, Bokuto watching him glide towards the center of the rink, catching up with a few people.

            “That reminds me,” Kuroo said after a few moments, turning to Bokuto as they continued around the edge. “Is it okay if I have Akaashi over tomorrow night? The library is always too crowded on Sunday nights.”

            “Sure.” Bokuto perked up, pushing off the edge of the rink to skate without support. “He can come for dinner if he wants! I’m cooking tomorrow.” He wobbled a bit on his skates as he gestured, steadying himself on Kuroo’s elbow for a moment before going back to holding onto the edge.

            “Okay,” Kuroo said. “Sounds like a plan—”

            Kuroo cut his sentence short with a strangled sound as someone skated up behind them, draping an arm over both his and Bokuto’s shoulder.

            “Getting the environmental law student to help you with your debate,” Oikawa said playfully, pulling them in closer as he leaned more heavily on their shoulders. “Very sneaky for an environmental management class.”

            “Smart, not sneaky,” Kuroo said, shrugging Oikawa’s arm off. Bokuto threw his arms over Oikawa’s shoulders instead, laughing as he clung to the back of his shirt.

            “Oikawa’s just worried he’ll lose,” Bokuto said, clutching Oikawa so tightly he was getting towed across the ice.

            “I’m not worried,” Oikawa scoffed, flashing them a grin as he dragged Bokuto behind him. “Bring it on.”

            Oikawa sped up, skating away from the edge of the rink, Bokuto hooting as they took a lap around the ice, breezing past Suga and Daichi. Kuroo followed close on their heels, kicking up a spray of ice as they rounded a corner. Bokuto closed his eyes for a moment, humming along as the music over the loudspeakers changed to another holiday song.

 

***

            Bokuto watched his breath curl above their heads, drifting off into the cloudy night sky as they headed back to the apartments. Kuroo was at his side, playing a puzzle game on his phone, their shoulders bumping together every now and then as they walked. Ahead of them, Suga and Oikawa talked excitedly about the Nutcracker show, their voices drifting back to them in snatches on the sidewalk.

            “Are you staying long enough to see the play this year?” Bokuto asked, as Oikawa’s voice exclaimed about Clara’s performer before drifting off again. Every year, the Nutcracker showed at the ice rink the day after finals ended, when most of the college students had gone home for the holidays and the locals could enjoy it. Since Kuroo was the farthest from home, he’d left early last year, the rest of the group going to see the play without him.

            Kuroo sniffed in the cold, clicking his phone screen off before shoving it deep into his pocket, letting his breath puff out in front of them.

            “I’m not sure,” he said. Ahead of them, Iwaizumi’s and Daichi’s silhouettes were moving on the sidewalk, black against the bright Christmas lights from the houses on either side of the quiet lane. Oikawa’s tall figure stopped for a moment, his hand waving as the two of them caught up to him, Suga’s voice calling out in the night. Someone sang a few notes of a Nutcracker song, Daichi yelling gruffly for them to be quiet on a residential street.

            “Aw,” Bokuto said, scrunching his hands to fists in his pockets. “I thought you wanted to come this year.”

            “I do.” Kuroo sniffed again, wiping his nose with a gloved hand. “It depends how quickly I can get this debate done. If I finish early I’ll have time to shop and pack and study and everything before the show.”

            “That’s almost a whole month from now!”

            Kuroo just hummed in agreement.

            Bokuto sped up slightly on the sidewalk, standing up taller as he glanced around them. The Christmas lights of the house next to them flickered around them, throwing everything in a blue glow. “Then I’ll just help you pack,” Bokuto said, pleased with his plan. “So you have one less thing to do.”

            “Pass.”

            Bokuto put his hands on his hips, his skates clanking in the bag resting on his shoulder. “Kuroo!”

            Kuroo just snickered, tripping a bit on the sidewalk as Bokuto shoved him forward.

            “I’ll try to make it,” he said after a beat, burying his nose in his scarf. “I want to come with all of you this year.”

            Bokuto swung his arms a little faster as they walked, smiling as the Christmas lights glowed around them.

 

 

***

 

 

           

            The next night Bokuto found himself on the couch in front of the TV, ignoring his textbook as Kuroo fiddled with his phone beside him. There was a soft knock at the door and Bokuto shifted under the blankets, trying to wriggle free from the cocoon he’d rolled himself into on the couch.

“I’ll get it,” he said, the tip of his tongue sticking out slightly as he managed to worm one arm out from the blankets. Kuroo just laughed, the couch springs creaking as he got up instead, turning the TV off as he headed for the front door.

            “Hey,” Kuroo said, opening the door to reveal Akaashi bundled up on the front porch, his nose buried into his scarf to block the chill of the night. A gust of wind blew through the living room before Kuroo could shut the door behind Akaashi, Bokuto shivering on the couch.

            “Ready to work on this debate?”

            Akaashi slipped off his backpack, taking a quick look around their tiny apartment before setting it down at the foot of the couch. “I’m ready,” he said.

            “Akaashi, this is Bokuto, by the way,” Kuroo said. “My housemate. I don’t know if you remember him from the ice rink yesterday. Bo, this is Akaashi Keiji, debate partner and Oikawa crusher.”

            “Just debate partner,” Akaashi said, pulling his gloves off and tucking them into his jacket pockets, giving Kuroo a look before turning to Bokuto. “Nice to meet you.”

            “Hello!” Bokuto pulled his other arm free and kicked off the rest of his blankets, springing up to shake Akaashi’s hand. His fingers were still cold from outside, Bokuto wishing he could transfer him some heat as he glanced down at Akaashi’s red cheeks. “It’s okay if you can’t crush Oikawa. Kuroo’s already been trying for two years now.”

            Akaashi’s eyes flicked to Kuroo. “Maybe I should pick a debate partner who can actually win.”

            “A fair point,” Kuroo said.

            “No, no, no!” Bokuto looked at Kuroo in horror, who just smiled and shrugged as if it didn’t matter either way. “Listen,” he said, putting a hand on Akaashi’s shoulder, steering him down the short hallway to the kitchen. “You have to keep Kuroo as your partner. I know he may not seem like it, but he’s the best choice for you.”

            “Really,” Akaashi said.

            “I’d love to hear why,” Kuroo said as he slid into the kitchen behind them, taking a seat at the table, three plates already waiting around the dinner Bokuto had made.

            “I mean, Case A,” Bokuto said, hopping into his own chair and gesturing for Akaashi to do the same. He ripped off the tinfoil from the dish he’d made in the oven earlier, ladling himself a heaping plate. “You get great brain food before you have to start _working_ ,” Bokuto said, as if they were discussing taxes, or the plague.

            “True,” Kuroo said.

            Bokuto gestured for Akaashi to hand him his empty plate, ignoring the dribble of food that fell onto the table as he served him. “You can’t get this at the library,” Bokuto said, waving off Akaashi’s thanks. “And that’s where Oikawa lives.”

            Kuroo shook his head in mourning and Bokuto snickered.

            “And what’s Case B?” Akaashi said.

            “Eh?”

            “You can’t have a Case A without a Case B,” Akaashi said, picking up his fork. “Why else should Kuroo be my debate partner?”

            “Wow!” Bokuto chewed quickly, slamming his fork down on the table. “You already sound like a good debater!”

            Kuroo cracked up, helping himself to a plate. “Case B, you’ll be showered in praise the entire time we work on the project.”

            Bokuto glared at him briefly before turning back to his plate, taking a large bite. “I’m trying to sell you here,” he said, talking around his food. “I want you to get this debate done so you can go to the play!”

            “Bokuto-san,” Akaashi said, talking before Kuroo could open his mouth. “I won’t pick another partner. You don’t have to worry about Kuroo-san.”

            Bokuto beamed, watching Akaashi take a huge forkful of food.

            “It’s because of my cooking,” Bokuto said to Kuroo. Akaashi just raised his eyebrows, looking away as Kuroo snickered.

            They ate the rest of dinner quickly, Akaashi thanking him for the food as Kuroo grabbed his bag from the living room and they headed upstairs to start researching. Bokuto stayed downstairs, shoving the plates into the dishwasher as he looked out the kitchen windows, Christmas lights twinkling out of students’ apartment across from them.

 

 

***

 

            Bokuto sunk down lower on the bleachers a few nights later, watching his breath curl above him as he sighed deeply. He had a textbook open on his lap, but he ignored it, instead idly watching the end of the youth’s league ice hockey game before free skate was supposed to begin. He was supposed to meet Kuroo and the rest of the group to skate, but his class had let out early and he’d ended up at the rink pretending to study. Down below him, parents chattered closer to the ice, occasionally calling out a player’s name in cheer.

            “Bokuto-san.”

            Bokuto jumped, looking behind him to find Akaashi leaning against the railing, a bag slung over his shoulder and a pair of skates dangling from his fingers.

            “Akaashi!” Bokuto said, scooting over to make room as Akaashi climbed down the bleachers. “How are you?”

            Akaashi stopped beside Bokuto, setting his bag down carefully as he shrugged. His scarf was still pulled over his chin, the tip of his nose bright red from the cold outside. Bokuto pressed his lips together, trying not to smile at the fact that his nose matched the color of his hat and scarf almost perfectly.

            “I’m okay, Bokuto-san,” he said, sitting down next to Bokuto. “How are you?”

            “Studying hard,” Bokuto said, gesturing to his abandoned textbook, Akaashi smiling slightly and shaking his head. “Are you here for free skate soon?”

            Akaashi nodded, propping his feet up on the seat below them. They were quiet for a moment, watching the rink below them as the smallest of the kids slipped on the ice, her stick sliding away from her, one of the parents visibly wincing.

            “Oh, man,” Bokuto said, pointing as she got back on her skates. “That little one is a trooper.”

            Akaashi followed Bokuto’s finger, watching her speed off towards the rest of the players. She tucked herself tighter, barreling through the players towards the puck.

            “I wish I learned to skate when I was little,” Bokuto said wistfully, watching her speed around the ice. “It’s so hard learning now.”

            “Skating is easier when you’re younger,” Akaashi agreed, propping his elbows on his knees.

            “Did you skate when you were younger?” Bokuto asked. “You skate really good, I remember from the other day!” Bokuto paused for a moment. “Really well,” he corrected.

            Akaashi turned to him for a moment, his dark eyes catching his, and Bokuto found himself smiling automatically.

            “I used to live next to a pond that would freeze over in the winter,” he said, shrugging. “My older sister taught me to skate.”

            “Hey!” Bokuto said. “Just like the pond outside our apartment complex!”

            Akaashi blinked, his eyebrows knitting together for a moment. “We can skate on that?”

            “Of course! Me and Kuroo and everyone used to all the time last year.” Bokuto paused, tapping his chin for a second. “I mean, we’re probably allowed. Nobody stopped us.”

            The crowd of parents by the ice rink cheered and they looked back at the game, the little girl pumping her fists as she skated around the goal, her teammates cheering her on.

            “She’s really good,” Bokuto said.

            Akaashi hummed, clasping his hands in front of him.

            “You know, I heard it’s supposed to get really cold starting this week.”

            Akaashi turned back to him, his lips parted slightly in question. Bokuto couldn’t help but notice the very tip of his nose was still red.

            “Cold enough for the pond to freeze over,” Bokuto added. “So we don’t have to wait until free skate at the rink so late at night.”

            “Really?” Akaashi said.

            “Maybe then I could get better at skating,” Bokuto said, resting his elbows on his knees. In front of them, the final buzzer sounded, the smallest player zipping around the rink one final time, pumping her fists excitedly.

            Akaashi rubbed the tip of his nose, folding his arms across his chest before giving Bokuto a smile.

            “Akaashi!”

            Bokuto’s foot slipped off the bench beneath them and Akaashi started at the sound, the both of them glancing below them to see Kuroo waving at them, pointing at his laptop and gesturing for Akaashi to come down.

            Akaashi picked up his bag, slinging it over one shoulder before hesitating, turning slightly towards Bokuto on the bench.

            “Kuroo-san is working really hard on our debate,” Akaashi said, glancing below them before looking back at Bokuto. “I’m sure I’ll see you around.”

            “Yeah,” Bokuto said. He shut his textbook, the smile on his face too big as Akaashi turned to head down the bleachers. “Good luck!”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> they goin christmas tree shopping

“Was that Akaashi that you were talking to earlier?”

            Bokuto slowed down a bit on the sidewalk, looking around to find Oikawa coming up behind him, flashing him a smile as he caught up to his side. He pulled his headphones out of his ears, the tinny sound of his music sounding too loud on his walk alone back to the apartments.

            “What?”

            “Oh, you know,” Oikawa said, waving his hand dismissively in front of them. The street was empty around them, Christmas lights blinking in the midnight silence on the residential lane. Oikawa’s breath puffed out in front of them in a cloud, disappearing above them quietly. “I saw you two talking before free skate.”

            “Oh.” Bokuto adjusted the strap of his bag, feeling his skates clank together, the sound echoing in the cold quiet. “Yeah, I ran into him earlier. I think Kuroo is studying with him now if you need to ask him something.”

            Oikawa laughed through his nose, putting a hand on Bokuto’s shoulder. “No, I don’t need to talk to him.”

            “Really?” Bokuto shrugged his shoulder, Oikawa’s gloved hand sliding off easily. He narrowed his eyes at Oikawa, scrunching his nose against the night chill. He debated whether putting his hands on his hips would add to his accusing tone or if Oikawa would just think it was funny. “Because it sounds like you’re spying on _someone’s_ debate.”

            “Jeez, relax,” Oikawa said, laughing as he held up both his hands in surrender. “I just wanted to know what you were talking about. Akaashi never talks to me.”

            Bokuto glanced at Oikawa, his face thrown in shadow as they passed a house draped in Christmas lights. “Really?”

            “Yeah,” Oikawa said. “He talks in class, but he doesn’t really _talk_ , you know?”

            Bokuto scrunched his nose. “What?”

            Oikawa snorted, another cloud of white disappearing above their heads. “I mean,” he said. “He’ll make a sarcastic comment every now and then, but I don’t really know anything about him.”

            “Nothing?”

            “He’s polite and always answers when I ask him questions, but he’s kind of a closed book.”

            Bokuto looked at the ground for a moment, scrunching his nose. “Really?”

            “Yeah.” Oikawa yawned, stretching his arms over his head. “That’s why I was wondering what you were talking about.”

            “Oh.”

            They walked in silence for a few moments, Bokuto putting one of his earphones in as he stared down at the cracked sidewalk. It really was going to start getting cold; a gust of wind blew down the street and Bokuto buried his nose in his sweatshirt collar, his eyes tearing as he wished he remembered to bring a scarf.

            After a while they turned down their apartment’s driveway, the pond just peaking out from behind the buildings as they got closer. At least the water would freeze over soon, Bokuto thought. And probably tonight.

            Bokuto stopped suddenly, Oikawa taking a few steps before realizing Bokuto wasn’t at his side anymore. He ripped out his earphones, giving Oikawa a glare.

            “You’re just making this up to try to trick me into giving you debate secrets!” Bokuto said, finally putting his hands on his hips.

            “What?” Oikawa laughed, switching his bag to the other shoulder. “What are you talking about?”

            “Akaashi talks just fine. He even told me he used to skate on the frozen pond by his house when he was younger.” Bokuto crossed his arms over his chest, grinning triumphantly. “So you’re lying about him.”

            “You got me,” Oikawa said, laughter in his voice. “I wanted to know Kuroo’s debate details, so I asked you, the farthest thing from a biology major, for the info.”

            “Well.” Bokuto could practically feel his hair drooping. “Yeah.”

            “You talked about your childhood with Akaashi?” Oikawa said instead, his smile just visible in the glow of the streetlight above them. “That’s really cute.”

            “Mean,” Bokuto said, sticking out his tongue before deciding it would probably freeze in the open air.

            “No,” Oikawa said, starting to walk towards his apartment building, Bokuto trudging reluctantly behind him. “I mean it, that sounds cute. It sounded like a nice talk.”

            They stopped in front of Oikawa’s building, Bokuto squinting his eyes in confusion while Oikawa fished around his bag for his keys. Bokuto shifted, trying to pretend he was squinting against the wind.

            “Well,” Oikawa said, jingling his keys triumphantly in the air. “I’ll see you around.”

            He smiled brightly, flashing Bokuto a peace sign before heading for his door, humming a Nutcracker song under his breath as he went. Bokuto stood on the sidewalk, staring after him even as the door shut behind him.

            Eventually he shoved his headphones back in his ears, practically marching back to his own apartment building, watching the pond shimmer between the trees as he walked.

           

           

***

 

            Bokuto threw his bedroom door open a few days later, the sound of the television humming lowly from downstairs. Bright sunlight streamed through the hallway window and he threw himself down the stairs, hopping over the last three steps and landing heavily in the living room.

            “Ready for Christmas tree shopping?” Bokuto said.

            Kuroo looked up from the TV, squinting through his glasses at Bokuto. He was propped up on one end of the couch, a blanket wrapped around him, blinking in the morning light.

            “That’s today?” Kuroo said, giving him a grin.

            “Oh, come on!” Bokuto jumped onto the couch, the blanket slipping off Kuroo’s shoulders as he bounced from the impact. “You know you’re excited. You even cleared a spot in the living room last night.”

            They both looked over at the empty corner by the television, their endtable now squished against the couch to make room for the dusty patch of bare carpet.

            “Looks kind of sad,” Kuroo said.

            Bokuto contemplated the empty corner for approximately five seconds before shooting up from the couch, humming an off key version of Jingle Bells under his breath as he grabbed his coat where it lay abandoned over the stair railing.

            “We have to get an even bigger tree than last year,” Bokuto said, tossing Kuroo his jacket, where it plopped onto the couch.

            Kuroo took his glasses off, folding them neatly before placing them on the coffee table. “Obviously,” he said, standing up and reaching for his jacket.

            Bokuto snickered, zipping up his puffy green jacket, ignoring how the fabric had started to tear slightly at the zipper seam, leaving a gaping hole where his sweatshirt peaked through.

            Kuroo gave him a look, shrugging into his own black peacoat. “Shouldn’t you put on some gloves or something? Or a hat?”

            “It’s not that cold out,” Bokuto said, shoving his sneakers on before throwing open the front door. A blast of cold air blew through the apartment, Bokuto’s toes curling in his shoes.

            “Are you sure?” Kuroo said, pulling on some gloves. “Last chance.”

            Bokuto ignored him, closing the front door behind him as he headed down the sidewalk to Kuroo’s car. His breath curled above him in a white cloud, obvious in the empty blue sky overhead, the morning looking falsely bright and sunny for such a cold day. He waited by the passenger side door for Kuroo to finish putting on his shoes, standing on tiptoe to peak at the pond behind their apartment building.

            The student apartments were spread out in neat rows of townhouses, Bokuto and Kuroo in the last building before the property ended, the pond close enough to see through the trees when all the leaves had fallen. Kuroo always mumbled under his breath about the long walk to the very back of the apartments, and Oikawa’s and everyone else’s apartments were much closer to the front, but Bokuto secretly liked being this close to the edge of the property. He even knew a shortcut past the pond to the street leading up to campus, as the pond wasn’t technically part of the apartments’ property.

            The car beeped next to Bokuto and he jumped, glancing up at the front door as it clicked shut behind Kuroo, who made his way slowly to the driver’s side of the car. Bokuto climbed in, rubbing his hands together for warmth as he settled in, aiming the heat vents to blow directly at his face.

            Kuroo climbed in, starting the car as he dropped a pair of spare gloves and a hat on Bokuto’s lap, shaking his head with a smile as he took the car out of park.

            “Only because you worry about me so much,” Bokuto said, pulling on the gloves as Kuroo snorted. His cell phone went off before he could open his mouth to reply, Kuroo digging it out of his jacket pocket and rolling his eyes at the caller.

            “Hello?” he said, pausing as whoever had called immediately started talking. Bokuto could hear their tinny voice through the phone. “Yeah, I’m with Bokuto.”

            “Okay,” Kuroo said after a moment, turning around to pull his backpack from the backseat, unzipping it to rifle around. There was a long pause, Bokuto squirming in his seat as he waited. “Yeah, we’ll be right there.”

            Kuroo clicked his phone off, shoving it back in his pocket before turning to Bokuto. “Oikawa’s at the library and needs an iPhone charger,” he said, rolling his eyes. “Mind if we make a pit stop?”

            “To the library,” Bokuto said, nudging the radio louder as they pulled out of the parking lot.

 

 

***

 

            “Look who finally made it!”

            Oikawa held his hand out, wiggling his fingers as Kuroo dropped him the charger, sitting down heavily at the table as he gave him a look. Akaashi glanced up curiously, shifting his chair over slightly, pushing the papers scattered everywhere aside as Kuroo slouched over the table. Bokuto slid in next to Kuroo, leaning back in the rickety library chair.

            “You should be more grateful,” Kuroo said, picking up one of the stray notebook papers.

            “By giving us snacks,” Bokuto said, lunging across the table to grab Oikawa’s backpack. He almost dropped it on the table, sagging at the weight of thousands of textbooks weighing it down.

            “Thank you,” Oikawa said, snatching the backpack from Bokuto before he could unzipper it. “You saved my life.”

            Kuroo flicked his wrist, grinning as he accepted the praise. “Don’t mention it.” 

            “You can leave now,” Oikawa said, plugging his phone into the charger.

            Kuroo glanced at the sheet of notebook paper in his hands, then over at Akaashi, who had gone back to typing at his laptop. “What are you two doing together?”

            Oikawa looked up from his phone, raising an eyebrow. “Am I not allowed to hang out with a fellow environmental management friend?”

            “Oikawa-san forgot about the quiz tomorrow and asked for last minute help,” Akaashi said, not looking up from his laptop.

            Oikawa turned in his chair, giving Akaashi an offended look that went unnoticed.

            Kuroo glanced at the papers all over the table. “What quiz?”

            “ _What quiz_?” Oikawa said gleefully. “You didn’t know?”

            “It’s on the Sudbury superstack,” Akaashi said.

            Bokuto picked up a piece of paper, a bunch of numbers written in neat lines next to diagrams. “Looks complicated.”

            “How long have you been studying already?”

            “Two hours.”

            Kuroo looked at Oikawa, then down at the paper in his hands. “Can I borrow these later tonight?”

            “Oh, I don’t know,” Oikawa said offhandedly. He looked down at his fingernails, picking at them idly. “That would put my standing as top student in the class in jeopardy.”

            “That would be Akaashi,” Kuroo said. Bokuto snorted.

            Oikawa glared at him before going back to examining his nails. “I don’t know, I have to pick up some groceries later. I don’t have time.”

            “But we just brought you a charger!” Bokuto said.

            “My only charger,” Kuroo added.

            Akaashi glanced between the two of them. “I can—”

            “I’ll tell you what,” Oikawa said grandly. “You go pick me up some bread and peanut butter right now, I’ll help you study later.”

            Kuroo glanced at Bokuto. “We were on our way to go get a Christmas tree.”

            “We can go right after,” Bokuto said. “And pick up snacks on the way!”

            There was a bang under the table and Kuroo winced, shifting slightly in his chair. “Actually, Bo, I think it’s faster if you just wait here.”

            “You can take my seat,” Akaashi said, closing his laptop and glancing at Bokuto squished in the corner. “I was just leaving.”

            “But you’re my ride home!” Oikawa said.

            “Walk,” Akaashi said.

            “Akaashi,” Oikawa said in a wounded voice.

            “I don’t want to wait in the library,” Bokuto said. “There’s nothing to do. I’ll just come with you.”

            “I’ll tell you what,” Oikawa said. “Why doesn’t Akaashi just drop you off at the Christmas tree farm. It’s right next to the apartments, right? This way he can drive me home.”

            Akaashi frowned. “But—”

            “And you can get a head start picking out a tree,” Kuroo said, turning to Bokuto. “I’ll meet up with you as soon as I’m done.”

            “Perfect,” Oikawa said with a grin. “Shall we head out, Akaashi?”

            Akaashi tucked his laptop into his bag, looking resigned. “Let’s go before you have an even worse idea.”

            Oikawa rubbed his hands together, flashing them a smile. “Great, let’s go.”

 

 

***

 

            “Make a right here.”

            Akaashi turned on his signal, his hands patiently on the wheel as he waited for a few cars to pass.

            “I didn’t know there was a Christmas tree farm this close to campus,” he said, pulling into the dirt driveway.

            “Isn’t everything a farm this far away from the city?” Oikawa said offhandedly, looking up from his phone in the front seat.

            Bokuto leaned in between the two front seats, his seatbelt straining. “How did you get your Christmas tree last year if you didn’t know this was here, Akaashi?”

            Akaashi glanced behind him for a moment before turning into the parking area. Ahead of them, a plot of land stretched out to the woods beyond, crowded with short pine trees, a lone wood cabin standing at the very front. People milled around the cabin out front, the occasional brightly colored coat flashing between the trees behind them.

            “I didn’t get a tree,” Akaashi said. “And my family had a plastic one for the holidays.”

            Bokuto gasped, leaning farther between the seats. “Akaashi,” he said, feeling the seatbelt lock across him. “It doesn’t feel like Christmas without a tree! You have to get one this year!”

            Akaashi pulled into a spot, putting the car in park. “Do I?”

            “Everyone should have one,” Bokuto said. “It’s the spirit of Christmas!”

            “True,” Oikawa said.

            Akaashi glanced at Bokuto in the rearview mirror. “The spirit of Christmas,” he said flatly. The car was still idling in the lot.

            “It’s tradition!”

            “It’s not my tradition.”

            “Listen,” Bokuto said, straining against his locked seatbelt. Oikawa snorted from the front seat but didn’t say anything. “There’s something totally magic about finding the perfect Christmas tree and then _chopping it down right in front of you_. You have to come see.”

            “That sounds barbaric,” Oikawa said.

            “It’s manly,” Bokuto said.

            Akaashi looked at Bokuto in the rearview mirror, his lips in a slight smirk. “You want me to come watch you have a manly experience?”

            “Ew,” Oikawa said.

            “ _No_.” Bokuto leaned back a bit, trying to unlock the seatbelt but only getting stuck farther away from the front seat. “Just come see the Christmas tree farm! It’s really nice out and they have free candy canes if you find a tree,” he said, gesturing out the windshield at the empty blue sky. “Do you have anything else to do since you’re done studying?”

            Akaashi looked down at the steering wheel, heaving a sigh before finally turning the car off. “I guess I don’t have anything better to do,” he said.

            “ _Yes_!” Bokuto shot forward in his seat, the locked seatbelt choking him in the throat before he finally unbuckled it, his body crashing forward to hit the console. “You can help me pick a tree before Kuroo shows up!”

            Akaashi just pulled on his gloves, shaking his head slightly at Bokuto in the rearview mirror before opening his door. “Okay, Bokuto-san.”

            A rush of cold air hit Bokuto in the face and he dug around in his pockets, pulling the crumpled hat and gloves Kuroo had given him earlier out as he followed Akaashi quickly out of the car. The ground crunched under foot and he grinned, pulling his hat on and taking a deep breath, letting it out in one long puff.

            “Are you coming, Oikawa?”

            “I’ll wait here,” Oikawa said, still sitting in the passenger seat. “So I don’t freeze to death in this ungodly cold.”

            “Come on,” Bokuto said, stamping his feet to warm them up. “It’ll be cold either way.”

            “No, I’d rather not.”

            “Just come!”

            “No.”

            “Akaashi,” Bokuto said, turning to him. “Tell Oikawa to get out of the car.”

            Akaashi looked blankly at the car, his nose buried in his scarf and his hands deep in his jacket pockets. “This was your idea, Oikawa-san,” he said simply.

            Oikawa heaved a sigh, throwing his car door open and stepping gingerly out onto the dirt. “Let’s go find the puppy a tree,” Oikawa said to Akaashi, slipping a pair of sunglasses onto the bridge of his nose.

 

***

 

 

            “So your parents weren’t big on the whole holiday traditions thing?”

            Akaashi looked up at Bokuto, the two of them walking side by side down the carved dirt path, the alley between trees just wide enough for them to stand a hair’s breadth apart from each other’s shoulders. The pines on either side of them were taller this far back in the lot, hiding everything else from view, enclosing them inside.

            “No, they like the holidays as much as everyone else,” he said, glancing at Bokuto before looking back at the path in front of them. One of the tree’s branches stuck out farther than the rest on the path, Akaashi skirting around it and brushing shoulders with Bokuto. “Real trees are just messy. And time consuming.” He was quiet for a moment, looking out at the trees. “And expensive.”

            “Student discount!” Bokuto said, reaching out to catch the branches beside him as they walked. He pulled off a stray branch tip, pine needles sticking to his gloves as he held it out to Akaashi. “And they smell good.” He paused for a second. “Smell well?”

            Akaashi just looked at him, shaking his head slightly even as he smiled. He took the piece of branch from Bokuto, holding it up to his nose for a moment. Bokuto pressed his lips together, trying not to laugh at how red the tip of his nose was from the cold again.

            “They do smell good,” he said, tucking the branch into his jacket pocket.

            “Now your coat’s gonna smell like Christmas,” Bokuto said. Akaashi looked away, the cold now tinging his cheeks pink.

            “So what traditions do you have then?” Bokuto asked.

            Akaashi thought about it for a moment. “On Christmas Eve my family goes skating after dinner on the pond by my house.” Akaashi ran his hand along the branches to his side, taking another deep breath. “If it’s cold enough to freeze over.”

            “Really? That’s so cool!” Bokuto turned right at the fork in the trail, leading Akaashi down a smaller path, the trees crowded closer together here. The trail was so narrow they walked one behind the other, Bokuto leading the way. “At my house on Christmas Eve my whole family comes over and cooks the biggest meal until we can hardly move we’re so full and everyone’s really drunk and loud.” Bokuto put a hand on his chin for a moment. “I think it’s so they don’t have to go to church.”

            Akaashi laughed and Bokuto turned around in surprise, letting out a laugh of his own before turning back around.

            “What about Christmas day?” Bokuto said over his shoulder. “What do you do then?”

            “Mostly nothing.”

            “Aw, really?” Bokuto said. “Do you visit family?”

            “Not usually.” Akaashi said. He was quiet for a moment. Behind them, a girl shrieked happily in the distance, just once. “I make apple pancakes with my sister.”

            “I’m coming over your place for Christmas, then!” Bokuto said, brushing a few branches out of his way. “My whole family goes to my grandparents’ on Christmas and gets really drunk and loud again.”

            “I’m seeing a pattern here, Bokuto-san.”

            Bokuto laughed, moving more branches out of the way. “My family is always really big and loud.”

            “You sound like you really like them.”

            “Yeah,” Bokuto said, smiling to himself. To their left, a family headed down a path adjacent to them, stopping to quietly discuss a tree before moving on. Bokuto ran his hands along some of the branches, his gloves snagging on the needles. “What about you, Oikawa?”

            It was quiet for a moment, Bokuto turning around, looking for Oikawa behind him. “Oikawa?”

            They both stopped and listened, the only sound the wind whistling down the path. Somewhere behind them, a cell phone rang, a woman answering it before moving away, her voice drifting off.

            “I don’t think Oikawa-san followed us back here,” Akaashi said.

            Bokuto scrunched his nose, pulling out his phone and dialing Oikawa’s number. The phone rang twice before going straight to voice mail, Bokuto pulling his phone away from his ear to see he had no new messages either.

            “No answer,” he said.

            “Maybe he went back to the car.”

            “You think?” Bokuto laughed. “What a baby, it’s not that cold.”

            Akaashi gave him a look, staring at Bokuto with his buried his nose in his scarf.

            “I mean, it’s a _little_ cold,” he said, gesturing for Akaashi to follow him back the way they came. “We should probably move towards the front. Kuroo’ll meet us where they have all the cheap trees we can buy.”

            “Bokuto-san,” Akaashi said, not moving. “Why did you lead us down this far if you weren’t going to _buy_ any of these?”

            “For fun!”

            Akaashi just looked at him, his breath clouding between them, shivering in his jacket.

            “Oh, come _on_ , Akaashi, aren’t the trees nice? They’re so cool!”

            Akaashi kept glaring at him. “They’re trees.”

            Bokuto laughed, crossing his arms over his chest. “Akaashi, you don’t look intimidating at all when your nose is bright red.”

            “Bokuto-san,” Akaashi said, looking away as he moved his scarf up to cover the bridge of his nose. Bokuto just laughed again, moving a branch aside to gesture for Akaashi to go ahead.

            “After you,” Bokuto said.

            Akaashi rolled his eyes, burying his hands in his pockets before heading down the path. Bokuto let the branch snap back in place, marching happily after Akaashi’s quick pace.

 

            ***

 

 

            They made it back to the front of the farm, Kuroo waving to them from beside the shorter, more spindly trees, Oikawa at his side, sunglasses still perched on the bridge of his nose as he scrolled through his phone.

            “I thought you guys got lost or something,” Kuroo said as they pulled up next to them, giving Bokuto a clap on the shoulder.

            “Nah,” Bokuto said, waving his hand. Akaashi just stood next to him, one eyebrow raised as he tucked his nose into his red scarf.

            “Oikawa, what happened to _you_?” Bokuto said, turning to him. “I tried calling you.”

            Oikawa shrugged, clicking his phone screen off. “I guess I didn’t hear it.”

            Akaashi looked at the phone in his hand, Kuroo pulling their attention to a tree he’d found, Bokuto immediately exclaiming over the fat, stumpy tree. They called someone over, their tree getting cut down in a gloriously short ceremony, Bokuto closing his eyes briefly as he inhaled the scent of freshly-cut pine.

            As they headed inside the tiny cabin to pay, Bokuto hung back, looking at the wreathes and ribbons lining the back wall, Kuroo and Oikawa up front waiting in line at the register. Somebody came up to stand by his side and he looked over, smiling at Akaashi.

            “Look,” Bokuto said, bending down to pick up a few stray branches, the scraps nobody wanted from the wreathes above them. He gathered them together in a bunch, picking up a ribbon scrap from the wood floor and tying them together in a sloppy knot.

            “It’s your very own Christmas tree,” Bokuto said, offering it to Akaashi. He took it gingerly, smelling the needles before looking up at Bokuto, giving him a small smile. “To start your own holiday tradition.”

            “Thank you,” he said quietly. “I don’t know if I’ll have space for it in my living room.”

            Bokuto laughed, throwing his head back, the sound ringing out in the tiny cabin.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> how unromantic of u bokuto


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thanks to lidia for going ice skating with me for the first time in 8 years and also thnks for making me completely wipe out and inspiring a piece of this fic

A tree creaked in the wind and Bokuto looked up at the gray clouds, the bare branches of the woods framing the sky overhead. He pulled his jacket hood farther down over his head, trying to block the wind from freezing his ears off as he took the shortcut through the woods back to his apartment.

            Through the trees, Bokuto could see the gray expanse of the small pond flicker into view, the water now completely frozen after a week of freezing temperatures. As he got closer, he could hear the sound of a lone pair of skates cut across the ice, the sound shushing through the silence of the woods even as the campus stood just behind them.

            Bokuto sucked on his bottom lip, his foot wavering over the path for a moment before he veered off, heading for the bank of the pond. As the trees cleared away, he could see the figure skating over the ice, his red gloves and scarf bright against the cloudy skies. Frozen mud crunched under Bokuto’s feet as he drew up to the edge of the pond, his eyes following the figure cutting figure eights.

            “Akaashi,” Bokuto called, stuffing his hands in his pockets against the chill.

            The figure stopped, silent on the ice for a moment, before Akaashi skated over, coming to a slow stop by the bank.

            “Bokuto-san,” Akaashi said, his voice loud in the ringing silence of the empty pond.

            “Akaashi,” Bokuto said again. He grinned, rocking on his toes for a moment, enjoying the silence as Akaashi just looked at him. “Hey, you found the pond.”

            “I did,” Akaashi said. He was still stopped on the ice, his breath coming in little white puffs as he breathed deeply under his coat, catching his breath. His red scarf had come loose around his neck, his nose bright red against the cold.

            Bokuto took a tentative step onto the ice, holding his breath as he tested his weight. His sneakers slipped slightly and he took another cautious step, stopping in front of Akaashi.

            “Wow,” he said. “It holds both of us up.”

            Akaashi gave him a look before pushing off softly on one skate, turning to make a slow circle around Bokuto. “Were you trying to crack the ice?”

            Bokuto grinned. “No,” he said, turning slightly in place to follow Akaashi’s slow circle. “But last year Oikawa tried to get on the ice while Kuroo was testing it and his foot fell through.” He watched Akaashi raise his eyebrows, still skating slowly around him. “He said he couldn’t feel his foot the whole run home.”

            Akaashi glided to a stop, putting his gloved hands in his pockets as he shook his head slowly. “Oikawa-san doesn’t seem so smart outside of classes.”

            Bokuto laughed. “Finally somebody gets it!” he said, putting his hands on his hips. “Now you’ll have no problem beating him in your debate.”

            Akaashi contemplated him for a moment. “You really want Kuroo-san to do well on his final,” he said.

            “Well, yeah,” Bokuto said, waving his hand dismissively. “He said if he finishes early he’ll have time to come see the Nutcracker after finals are over.”

            Akaashi looked down at the ice, skating forward for a moment before gliding to a slow stop. “The Nutcracker play at the ice rink,” he said, looking back at Bokuto.

            “Yeah!” Bokuto followed, sliding his feet forward cautiously over the ice. “Have you been before?”

            Akaashi shook his head, turning to face Bokuto again. “I saw the advertisements.”

            “You should come!” Bokuto said. “Since you like skating so much.”

            “Maybe.” Akaashi smiled slightly, drifting farther away on the ice as he skated backwards, still facing him. “If I can prepare my debate early.”

            Bokuto laughed, catching up to him on the ice. He skidded slightly, gliding forward, and Akaashi sped up the tiniest amount, turning to skate forward before skidding to a stop, his skates shushing against the ice.

            “Wow,” Bokuto said, feeling his cheeks pink in the wind the farther he got from shore. “You really are amazing at skating.”

            Akaashi put his hands in his pockets, watching Bokuto as he caught up to him. His eyes were dark against his pale skin, his lips turned slightly upwards. “Thank you,” he said quietly.

            “When everyone else first started skating,” Bokuto said, mirroring Akaashi and shoving his hands in his pockets as he stood across from him. “I couldn’t even stand on my skates. I just shuffled around in my sneakers while everyone else skated. It was only this year I bought my first skates and went to the ice rink,” Bokuto said proudly, puffing out his chest slightly. “Now I can finally skate without holding on to anything.” He tapped his chin for a second. “Or anyone.”

            Akaashi smiled, the wind whipping across the pond, pushing him backwards slightly on the ice. “Good for you, Bokuto-san.”

            Bokuto took another step forward, feeling weak-kneed out in the middle of the ice. “I don’t know why I can’t get the hang of it more. Kuroo says it goes against gravity how much I fall.”

            Another gust of wind ripped across the pond and Akaashi was pushed back again, watching Bokuto as he slid the smallest amount backwards.

            “I could give you lessons,” he said finally, his eyes still on Bokuto. “If you’d like it.”

            Bokuto breathed out, a puff of white rising up between them. “Really?” he said, slowly breaking into a grin. “Would you really?”

            Akaashi shrugged, a small smile playing on his lips. “If you could bare Kuroo missing debate research for a few hours.”

            “Akaashi, you’re a saint!” Bokuto jumped in place, forgetting he was on ice in his excitement, his foot slipping slightly before he caught himself. “Let me just get my…”

            Bokuto looked behind him for a moment, back at the apartments, trailing off before turning to look back at Akaashi. “Oh,” he said, his voice dejected. “I promised I’d go grocery shopping today.”

            Akaashi stood there on the ice, his red gloves still buried in his pockets. “That’s alright, Bokuto-san.”

            Bokuto ripped his backpack off, pulling out his phone as the wind whipped at his un-gloved hands. “But we should do it this week! Wanna exchange numbers?”

            Akaashi smiled, skating closer to peek at Bokuto’s screen, looking up once to catch his eye.

 

 

***

 

 

            “Bokuto-san, push off with your feet like this.”

            Bokuto stretched his arm across his chest, rolling his shoulder in its socket before pushing off the bumpy, patchy pond ice, feeling his skates wobbling underneath him.

            “Like this?”

            “It’s not like walking, Bokuto-san. Push off from the side.”

            Bokuto scrunched his nose, pushing his foot to the side and feeling his balance pitch forward, sending him sprawling across the ice. Bokuto groaned slightly, rolling over until he lay on his back, staring up at the gray sky.

            It was two days after Akaashi had offered to give him lessons, and the same cloudy skies had been hanging over them since them, sending the temperatures plummeting and the winds howling, but not offering any snow. Akaashi skated over to Bokuto, his face appearing over him, blotting out a corner of the muted sky.

            “It’s hopeless,” Bokuto said from his position on the ground.

            Akaashi rolled his eyes, sticking a gloved hand out to pull Bokuto up, Bokuto wobbling slightly before finding his balance. “It’s not hopeless,” he said. “You just need practice.”

            “But I’ve been practicing!” Bokuto pushed up his old jacket sleeve, showing off all the marks along his elbow. “The bruises prove it.”

            Akaashi gave his bare arm a look, shivering slightly bundled in his own coat. “But do you practice without holding on to anything?”

            Bokuto slowly shook his head, thinking about the railing at the ice rink he usually stuck close to.

            “It’s about practicing without something to fall back on,” Akaashi said, skating a small circle around Bokuto. “To get used to the feeling of being unsupported.” He stopped at Bokuto’s side, the arm of his coat just brushing Bokuto’s jacket. “Just trust yourself.”

            “Trust myself?” Bokuto said, looking down at Akaashi. “I always trust myself.”

            Akaashi didn’t say anything, just looked up at him, shaking his head slightly. He took Bokuto’s hand in his own, Bokuto jumping slightly at his strong grip, feeling anything but balanced on his skates.

            “Just watch,” he said, catching Bokuto’s eye for a moment before pushing off on his skates, pulling Bokuto into motion beside him. Bokuto struggled slightly, making clumsy attempts at keeping up with him.

            They skated around the pond a few times, the wind picking up in Bokuto’s hair, each lap getting faster as Akaashi pulled him along. Bokuto tried glancing over at Akaashi, but he kept his eyes ahead.

            “What am I watching?”

            Akaashi didn’t answer, just glanced up at him as they pulled out of a turn, letting go of Bokuto’s hand completely and coming to a sudden stop. Bokuto felt his stomach drop somewhere below the ice, his body still being propelled forward even as Akaashi grew smaller behind him. He felt his knees lock in place, gliding across the ice, faster than he ever had without anyone for support.

            “See?” Akaashi called behind him. “You can support yourself if you just trust yourself enough to get going.”

            Bokuto turned his head, trying to look back at Akaashi, feeling his weight shift underneath him, his skates catching on a bump in the ice before his body flew forward, skidding a few feet before he came to a stop, face down on the ice.

            Bokuto lay there for a moment, forehead against the ice, feeling his knees sting from the impact. It was quiet now that he was still, the sky feeling empty above him.

            Akaashi skated over to him, his skates shushing quietly over the ice, Bokuto listening to him stop above him. He could hear him breathing, catching his breath as he watched Bokuto sprawled out on the ice.

            “Bokuto-san?”

            A gust of wind blew across the pond, freezing against the back of Bokuto’s neck, and he shivered. He could feel his heartbeat receding, the last thrill of excitement leaving his veins.

            Bokuto picked up his head, squinting against the gray light, his eyes shining even as a dusting of ice melted on his cheek, freezing water dripping into his collar.

            “That was amazing!” he said, pushing himself up on all fours, Akaashi supporting his elbow as he got back onto his feet. “Like, is that how you feel going that fast all the time?”

            “Bokuto-san, I think your knee is bleeding.”

            Bokuto glanced down briefly at his legs, waving airily at a small rip in his jeans. “It was like, it felt so amazing just gliding that fast, your heart still beating all crazily after working that hard to get you there.”

            Akaashi looked at him for a moment, his brows furrowed, before his expression smoothed out, seeming to accept it. “It does feel nice when you get the hang of it,” he said, tugging on Bokuto’s elbow.

            Bokuto started to stand up, his knees buckling as his skates slid out from under him, crashing back to the ice, pulling Akaashi with him as they landed in a heap, Akaashi somehow pinned underneath him.

            “Oops,” Bokuto said, scrambling to get off Akaashi. Even more shaved iced had found its way down the back of his jacket, melting in cold rivulets down his back. “Sorry.”

            Akaashi sat up slowly, his skates scraping on the ice as he brushed a wet glove over his cheek, shivering as a gust of wind blew. He winced, brushing melting ice off his coat, looking up at Bokuto. “Should we try that again?”

            Bokuto laughed, heaving himself to his feet, holding his arms out to balance himself as he wobbled on his skates. “Should we?” He held a hand out for Akaashi, who just waved it away, rising gracefully to his feet.

            “You’re almost getting the hang of it, Bokuto-san,” he said, crossing his arms over his chest. Both his cheeks and his nose were now bright red, his shoulders shaking in the cold as they stood in the middle of the pond. “Let’s do it again. If you want to.”

            Bokuto couldn’t help but notice the tips of his red ears. “Are you sure?”

            Akaashi nodded, holding out a gloved hand, and Bokuto took it, letting out a loud gasp as his bare hands touched his.

            “Akaashi, your fingers feel like ice cubes,” Bokuto said, immediately dropping them.

            “Oh.”

            Akaashi curled his gloved fingers into his palm, shivering again.

            Bokuto looked at him for a moment, his eyes squinting, before he turned around promptly, clomping his way towards the bank of the pond. There was a moment of silence behind him before he heard a sigh, skates gliding across the rough ice.

            “Don’t walk, push off with the sides of your feet, Bokuto-san,” Akaashi said from behind him, sounding resigned.

            Bokuto hit the frozen mud of the bank and immediately sat down, ignoring the cold seeping into the seat of his pants as he yanked at the laces of his skates. “We have to go home,” he called out across the pond, his tongue peeking out between his teeth as he pulled his skates off his feet.

            Akaashi glided to a stop before stepping gingerly onto solid ground, finding a fallen log to sit on before untying his own laces. “And why is that?”

            “Because,” he said, tossing one of his skates in his bag. “You’re gonna turn into an icicle in about fifteen minutes.” He threw his other skate in, the metal clanking together. “And I have hot chocolate.”

            Akaashi looked up, his expression amused. “Do you.”

            “Uh huh.” Bokuto shoved his feet into his sneakers, springing up and wiping the seat of his pants. His knee stung as his jeans brushed over the cut, but he ignored it. “ _Really_ hot chocolate. And aren’t you meeting Kuroo soon to study?”

            Akaashi pulled his boots on, letting Bokuto pull him onto his feet as he grabbed his schoolbag. “I was.”

            “Perfect,” Bokuto said, already heading down the path to the apartment buildings. “You can just meet him at our place when he gets back from classes.”

            Mud crunched under foot as he heard Akaashi fall into step behind him and Bokuto grinned to himself, ignoring the stinging cold as he hummed a Christmas song under his breath.

 

 

***

 

            Bokuto blew on his mug of hot chocolate, the pads of his fingers burning as he cupped it in his hands. Outside his bedroom window, the wind was still howling, rattling the screen in its frame. The sky was turning darker every minute, Bokuto feeling cozy inside with the Christmas lights reflecting softly in the window.

            “Sorry I made you almost freeze to death,” he called out, burning his tongue as he took a sip from his mug.

            “You didn’t,” Akaashi said, coming into the room with his wet clothes folded carefully under his arm, his hair ruffled from pulling on an old sweatshirt of Bokuto’s.

            “You could have died,” Bokuto continued, looking out the window at the clouds wistfully. “And then who would help poor Kuroo win his debate? Who would teach me to skate?”

            Akaashi rolled his eyes, shaking his head slightly as he set his clothes down on Bokuto’s mostly unused desk. “But you weren’t cold even without gloves on,” he said.

            “I wasn’t,” Bokuto said, putting his mug down on his nightstand and climbing onto his bed, pushing the pillows up against the walls to prop himself up. “My body just runs hot.”

            “Everyone has the same body temperature, Bokuto-san.”

            “No, I really do!” Bokuto pulled the comforter he rarely used from its spot wrinkled at the foot of the bed, fluffing it out before gesturing for Akaashi to join him. “I’m always warm, see?” he said, pressing his fingers to Akaashi’s frozen ones, who flinched as he sat down gently on the edge of his bed.

 

            Akaashi rolled his eyes again, moving his hand away as he settled down next to Bokuto. He shivered slightly, his hair still wet from the fall on the ice. “Your hands are hot after holding hot chocolate.”

            “Aw, just believe me,” Bokuto said, throwing the comforter over both of them. “And your fingers still feel like ice cubes. Maybe you just run cold.” He reached for the remote from his nightstand, clicking on the television at the foot of his bed, a cooking show flickering onto his old screen.

            “I don’t.”

            Bokuto settled down against the pillows, folding his arms across his chest in contemplation. “But your nose is always red from the cold.”

            Akaashi pulled his knees to his chest, touching the tip of his nose absentmindedly. “It isn’t.”

            “And your ears always turn red.”

            “ _Bokuto-san_.”

            “And you always wear a scarf and hat and gloves even when it’s not that cold!” Bokuto punched the air gleefully. “Admit it!”

            Akaashi leaned back against the pillows, looking at Bokuto for a moment before glancing back at the TV. “Okay,” he said finally, tracing the edge of the comforter. “I run cold.”

            “And I run hot,” Bokuto said emphatically, holding his palm out and wiggling his fingers.

            “And you run hot,” Akaashi said, placing his palm over Bokuto’s for a moment. Bokuto settled down happily, content at winning the argument, the cooking show humming quietly at the foot of his bed. The wind rattled the window in its frame again, howling outside, and Bokuto sunk deeper into his pillows, Akaashi breathing quietly beside him, his knees still pulled to his chest. Bokuto closed his eyes, out cold before the main course round even began.

 

 

***

 

            Bokuto woke with a start, the glare from his television cutting across the room in the dusk, the sun almost completely down. Outside, the wind was really howling now, constant white noise as Bokuto sat up, kicking the comforter off his sweaty body. Next to him, Akaashi breathed deeply in his sleep, only his dark hair visible over the top of the comforter as he lay curled on his side, his back to him.

            Bokuto stretched, yawning as he felt the cut on his knee twinge, all the bruises from each fall aching as he blinked the sleep out of his eyes. It was warm bundled up in bed, the mattress dipping in the middle, he and Akaashi just barely touching, Bokuto feeling the rise and fall of his back with every breath. He squeezed his eyes shut for a moment, imagining himself falling back asleep with an arm around Akaashi’s waist, before he shook his head, deciding it would be a good idea to leave immediately.

 He climbed over Akaashi as carefully as he could, his foot hitting Akaashi’s back on his way over and he winced, but Akaashi just shivered slightly in his sleep, not even turning over.

He tucked the comforter back over Akaashi, stifling a yawn as he shut his television off and headed downstairs into the living room, the lights from the Christmas tree he and Kuroo had spent an entire afternoon putting up glowing in the darkness. The wind rattled the windowpanes and Bokuto pulled down the blinds, gasping at the sheet of white covering the ground, snow hurling itself at the window as the wind continued to blow.

Bokuto grinned to himself, flopping down onto the couch by the window, reaching for the remote, some house hunting show appearing on a channel Kuroo must have been watching. Out the window, he could see a figure trudging up their front walkway, head bowed against the snow and wind.

A few moments later Kuroo threw open the door, snow blowing into the room before he shut it forcefully behind him, shaking out his hair as he pulled down his hood. The sound reverberated through the apartment, loud in the silence around the storm.

“Oh, man,” he said, seeing Bokuto lounging on the couch. “It’s really coming down out there.” He paused, peeling off his coat and going to hang it to dry by the front door, squinting at the extra coat hanging by Bokuto’s dingy green one. “I’m supposed to meet Akaashi at the library, but I don’t know if I can make it up there.”

“Oh, wow,” Bokuto said, sitting up on his knees on the couch, pressing his nose against the window to watch the snow fall. He squinted, trying to make out how much snow covered the parking lot in front of them by the glow of the streetlights. “That’s okay, Akaashi is already here.”

Kuroo kicked off his boots, heading to the kitchen and rustling around in the cabinets. “He’s here…as in on his way to our apartment?”

A door closed softly upstairs and Bokuto pulled away from the window, waving as Akaashi made his way slowly down the stairs.

“Hey, Akaashi!”

Akaashi paused on the last step, rubbing at his eyes with the back of his hand, blinking blearily around the living room. Bokuto’s sweatshirt had slipped off one of his more narrow shoulders, his hair flattened on one side.

“Akaashi?”

Kuroo came back into the living room, water bottle in hand, looking between Bokuto and Akaashi, eyebrows raised.

“Hello,” Akaashi said, his voice still rough from sleep.

“Akaashi, come here and look at the snow!” Bokuto said, turning back to the window. “It already looks pretty deep. Kuroo, how deep was it?”

“Enough to get my shoes soaked,” Kuroo said after another moment of looking between them, pulling out his phone and heading back to the kitchen, giving Akaashi a smile and a salute before turning around.

Akaashi made his way down the last step and into the living room, rubbing his eyes again as he came to stand behind Bokuto, peering out the dark window. “It started snowing almost as soon as you fell asleep,” he said quietly.

“Really?” Bokuto turned around, just catching the indent of a pillow on Akaashi’s cheek from the soft glow of the Christmas lights.

“You fall asleep pretty quickly,” Akaashi just said. Bokuto grinned, trying to look away from Akaashi’s cheeks. They were still pink, Bokuto could see up this close, a faint flush working its way from his cheeks up to his ears.

“Are you still cold?” Bokuto blurted, reaching for Akaashi’s hands without thinking. Akaashi let him take them, his fingers warm as Bokuto laced them through his.

Akaashi just shook his head, letting Bokuto pull him down onto the couch beside him. He yawned, resting his head against the back of the couch. They were quiet for a moment, pans rattling around the cupboards as Kuroo puttered around the kitchen, making himself dinner.

            “What are you watching?” Akaashi said eventually, eyeing the television, where a couple was walking through a beachfront house.

            Bokuto picked up the remote, reading off the description. “Island house hunters,” he said, tossing the remote back on the table. “It looks warm there.”

            “No snow,” Akaashi said, his eyes staying closed a moment too long as he blinked in the flickering light of the television.

            “You don’t like the snow?” Bokuto said. “But it’s so pretty!”

            “And cold.” Akaashi looked up at Bokuto, still looking sleepy. “And it’s covering the pond. No skating.”

            Bokuto sat up immediately, letting go of Akaashi’s hand. “What?”

            Akaashi yawned, rubbing a hand over his eyes. “Someone would have to clear it.”

            “But—” Bokuto’s sentence cut off in a yawn, which he tried to fight off. “I hate waiting until free skate—”

            He covered his mouth as he yawned again, shaking Akaashi’s shoulder. “Stop yawning, I’m upset and you’re making me yawn!”

            Akaashi raised his eyebrows, still resting his head against the back of the couch. “Don’t look at me then.”

            “But I _know_ you’re yawning, and I can’t—I can’t—”

            He grumbled after another yawn, putting his hands on his hips. Akaashi just rolled his eyes, sitting up straighter as Kuroo popped his head back into the living room.

            “You’re not going to fall asleep before our study session, are you?” he said, giving them a smirk. “We’ve got exciting things to discuss.”

            “Akaashi is going to make _me_ fall asleep again!” Bokuto said indignantly.

            “You’ll fall asleep anywhere,” Kuroo said, waving his hand. He looked back at Akaashi, leaning against the frame of the hallway, folding his arms across his chest. “You should have seen him at our holiday party last year.”

            “Kuroo,” Bokuto said, hurt in his voice. “You said you wouldn’t tell anyone—”

            “Out in the snow—”

            “Kuroo—!”

            “With no clothes on—”

            Bokuto jumped up from the couch, Kuroo cutting off into laughter as Bokuto hooked an arm around his neck. Akaashi just watched them from the couch, a slight smile on his face.

            “Say,” Kuroo said, trying to sound casual as Bokuto held him in a headlock. “Akaashi, you should come to our holiday party this year. Maybe you’ll get to see it happen again.”

            “It won’t happen again!” Bokuto shouted.

            “This Saturday,” Kuroo said.

            Akaashi shook his head, a smile on his face as he watched the two of them wrestle around. “I’d love to come,” he said, laughter in his voice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> you know that mistletoe trope is next


End file.
